Black Lives Matter Popular With Young White Americans, According To New Poll

Members of the group Black Lives Matter march to city hall during a protest in Minneapolis, Nov. 24, 2015. Photo: Reuters/Craig Lassig

Black Lives Matter often faces criticism from the right for being "divisive," but the group is winning over support across racial lines.

A new poll from GenForward released Tuesday suggests that support for the social justice movement is rising among young, white adults, according to the Associated Press. The poll shows that a majority of young people of all races in the United States, including white, black, Asian and Hispanic young adults, now support Black Lives Matter's call for greater accountability for police in the deaths of black Americans.

The GenForward poll, which surveyed 1,958 adults between the ages of 18 and 30 between Aug. 1 and Aug. 14, found that 51 percent of white adults in that age range say they now strongly or somewhat support Black Lives Matter, a 10-point increase from the same poll in June and a symbolically significant majority for the much maligned group.

Black Lives Matter activists have been relentless in recent years in keeping the movement's agenda of social justice and police reform in the spotlight, notably forcing presidential candidates to address the issues of police brutality and systemic racism. The movement has also grown increasingly aggressive in its protests. On Tuesday, Black Lives Matter protestors in London locked arms on a runway at London City Airport, forcing air traffic to and from the airport to shut down for hours.

NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick recently galvanized the national conversation about police brutality with his polarizing protest of the national anthem — the athlete has refused to stand for the anthem at preseason games and says he plans to continue in the upcoming regular season.

President Barack Obama expressed his approval of Kaepernick's protest over the weekend while speaking to reporters in China.

"When it comes to the flag and the national anthem and the meaning that holds for our men and women in uniform and those who fought for us — that is a tough thing for them to get past," Obama said. "But I don’t doubt his sincerity. I think he cares about some real, legitimate issues that have to be talked about. If nothing else, he’s generated more conversation about issues that have to be talked about."

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